Farriers are the centuries-old craftsmen of maintaining and caring for horses’ hooves. Their craft, if done well, prevents horses from injury, protects them from unhealthy wear and tear, and increases their ability for speed. Present-day, one might think of horses only in terms of sport or hobby; race horses or show horses, or your aunt who spends all her free time on personal horses. But, walk, or ride rather, further back into history, before farming machinery or vehicles or airplanes, and you’ll see horses were much more essential and even necessary for society’s inner workings; and so too then, were the farriers who took care of them. 

In 1897, horseshoes dating back to 400 B.C. were found in an ancient Etruria tomb. They were made of bronze and lying next to the jaw of a horse, still with a few teeth left. Not much is known as to the extent of their usage there, or whether the farrier existed in that age. Even so, that ancient culture at least understood the wear and tear a horse endures from riding, working, and farming, and the needed protection. Therein starts the tradition of horseshoeing, or, what’s now called, “farrier” work. 

The Romans provide the earliest evidentiary example of farrier work as a profession. Farriers were a vital part in pursuing the Roman mission—which, for the most part, was conquering. To conquer, one needs transportation; enter the horse. To maintain transportation abilities, one needs the mechanic; enter the farrier. And back then, the farrier did more than protect horses’ hooves. They tended to the horses’ health. They knew equestrian anatomy more than most, and knew the symptoms and signs that spelled disease. Thus, the Roman government treated farriers well. They allotted specific resources to farriers and often had rules against farriers being involved in the more strenuous exercises employed by their military. Edward II, of the Normans, thought farrier work so important, that his military advance on France in 1359 included a whole forge to ensure horses had shoes. 

Before the Industrial Revolution, horseshoes were made individually by blacksmiths, or the farrier himself. Materials used, throughout history, ranged from plants, rawhide, and leather straps; the Romans used “hipposandals.” Ancient Asia used plants to weave the shoes, which worked both as protection and a therapeutic for when the horse had sores. In the modern era, the standard material is steel or aluminum. They found steel to be more durable. And aluminum, a lighter metal, enhances a horse’s speed. 

The first industrialized machine for producing horseshoes arrived in the early 1800s, and the first machine patented was in the United States, 1835; a machine that produced 60 shoes per hour. Some historians posit that one reason the North emerged victorious in the Civil War was because they acquired one of these machines. Their horses were better equipped and healthier for long battles and travel. The South did not have such productive machinery. 

Throughout history, as the above demonstrates, the farrier craft has remained largely unchanged. Certainly, there’s been evolution in areas, say materials used, or the craft of nailing the shoe to the horse—which evolved in Europe over rough terrains—but the knowledge, tradition, and craftsmanship, handed down generation to generation, looks as it did in 400 B.C. Of course, modern-day, there is no preparing horses for wars or employment by empires obsessed with conquering lands. Instead, they have become race horses, show horses, and residential horses. Regardless of the shift, clamor for the centuries-old craft carried on by farriers remains. 

Happy horseshoeing, friends! 

Guest post contributed by: James Barrows